


the winner takes it all

by laforza (orphan_account)



Series: Football — AU [1]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Champions League, F/M, Football, Football | Soccer, M/M, Multi, Sports, World Cup
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-24
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-09-25 04:23:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20370631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/laforza
Summary: A sport that seems to be as dramatic and as standstill as football, for decades it has been the most followed and favorite sport of billions, harboring in countless athletes, supporters, drama, money and goals. Every season brings something or someone new to the table, good or bad.[ because nothing says absolute drama like a football au created by me and co-created by my dear ileana who will always be my madrista rat ]





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> a new fic wow xx this one has literally been in the making for almost three years but for the last like six months I scream at ileana if I should publish it or not and she said I should so if this flops won't be surprised! @leljaaa be the tumblr and give a follow to @vsesvit on tumblr ! enjoy, it's mainly focused on draž but a lot of canon and also latins, I love them and never write them enough in hitman au - lily

_Zagreb, Croatia _

_June 10th 2011_

_7:59 PM_

_— _

_-: ✧ :-゜・．_

Dražen's pacing seemed beyond the realm of exhausted, his entire head seemed to spin as he stared at his phone and prayed for some kind of a call, a message, an email— hey, he was still his own manager, not like he had a manager or some kind of publicist specifically for himself, he was talented but not yet _that_ talented.

"Calm down, you'll get the call when you least expect it." Idriza called from the large leather sofa, turning the page in her magazine as she hummed, still in your dirty socks from the women's national team training today. His younger sister's tone was definitely not supposed to be of offense to the Croatian but considering the nerves he felt, he spat back: "I know that!" 

The phone rang suddenly and he felt his entire body collapse right next to her before he said a prayer and answered the phone, his heart beating fast and feeling as if he was about to completely black out. "Hello?" He finally spoke, as if he hadn't memorized the number of the team and their entire office. "Is this Dražen Krleza?" He smiled at the simple gesture and nodded, "Yes, that is me." 

Idriza looked over and set her magazine down, the Bosnian frowning seeing his eyes widen and stay still, she got up and bent down next to him, preparing for the worst news. He put the phone down before taking a breath and screaming, "They accepted! I'm transferring for 30 Million!" He yelled before Idriza laughed and they aimlessly swung around and jumped, thank god their house was in a secluded area. 

He wiped his own eyes and laughed, shaking his head in disbelief, he was prepared for the enslaught of comments about how terrible of a transfer he would be but he was ready if that meant playing for his dream team.

"You should tell Enis." Idriza spoke up smirking, Dražen rolled his eyes. "I don't want to talk to him, he gave up playing football and now he wants to tell me that he's retiring, he's only 21!" He spoke defensively about his best friend and former teammate though the word former still stung like an entire beehive, one injury shouldn't make anyone retire but in this sport it very well could, he was completely bashed in the head and broke his knee, he gave up the minute he stepped into the Russian hospital when they were playing in Moscow. 

_***_

_"You can't just give up!" He yelled to his teammate who told him to quiet down, they were in a hospital in another country, not just back in Zagreb which only made him twice as angry, "Don't tell me to be quiet! You're 20!" He cried out, groaning as Enis only sat in silence, staring at his hands and feeling every part of his head and knee want to explode._

_"Dražen its not your duty to decide what I do with my life!" He squeezed his eyes shut before the Bosnian breathed, "I'm not gonna fight with you, you're my best friend but I think I'm going to quit it, if not retire I'm taking atleast next season off completely to recover." _

_Retirement was never a word he would hear from Enis Metikoš, the tall boy Bosnian from Neum who ran over to Zagreb, only wanting to play football since he was basically born. Retirement never seemed like a possibility since they had met and bonded at a young age, always partnering and being Dinamo Zagreb and Croatia's iconic duo for matches and media. _

_"Stop joking around, you're kidding." He said before Enis groaned and shook his head, "Don't get sad or sappy, this is just what we have to do in this sport sometimes."_

_"We were going to play the World Cup together!" He moaned, sitting now with Enis who grabbed and held his hand tightly, "I will try whatever I can for you and you know—" he winked trying to brighten the mood a bit for them both despite his condition, "I can always just become a manager!" _

_Judging by the look that formed from Dražen's face, it must've made Enis back off quickly from the harmless joke._

_"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" _

_*** _

"It was never your decision to make Dražen, I know he was a big part of the national team but that doesn't mean you can just shit over what must've been the hardest decision of his life." The words were true but the Croatian's tongue was tied, she was absolutely right but a part of him ached beyond belief seeing his former teammate in rehabilitation and just walking around the camp, trying to look better for a chance to play on the field again.

"But—" she said, interupting, and running to the kitchen and pulling out Rajika, "Let's celebrate!" She yelled before swigging the bottle and chanting in Croatian with her brother who smiled widely, "Real Madrid here I come!" 

//

_Madrid, Spain_

_December 1st 2012 _

_5:32 AM_

_— _

_-: ✧ :-゜・．_

The phone light shined in front of the Croatian's face but he ignored it, since moving to Madrid he had been igniting a social media addiction and it wasn't from actual enjoyment. 

He knew football could be cruel and knew football was a sport with the worst media and most passionate fans imaginable, everything was a fight for basic human right but he never expected such backlash. The first thing on his Instagram feed was him tagged to a post that directed him to a picture that showed he had been voted this year's worst transfer in any league.

"Wonderful." He had to smile at all the negativity because that was all he could do, not like any of these comments were earning a 30 million check but still a part of him was very clearly bothered as he tapped out of the post and locked his phone. "Dammit." He whispered before groaning, tearing up.

This was part of reality: every player was bashed when transferring but triple that if you were a Eastern European or Balkan player going to the Premier League or even La Liga it seemed, he had to just be used to it now, the snide roll of the eye when he mentioned his nationality and the awkward exchanges between media during and after games for reports, his English was quite good especially after taking the language since he was 8, he had very good progress compared to some of his teammates. Spanish was easier to pick up then English for sure.

It was still a wonderful feeling to wake up in Madrid, playing for his childhood favorite team. He had decided on the number 10, it was always his lucky number and it was the day of the month he got this once in a life time contract, so far the contract was accounting for three years but he hoped to make enough progress and develop to prove everyone wrong about him.

His new teammates were quite wonderful when they trained and had to communicate, Dražen was still quite shy and only nosily listened to conversations they took water breaks and didn't eat too much those first few weeks, not wanting to bare sitting alone. Off the pitch he was a completely different person then what he wanted to be. There would be the occasional pat or handshake and even talks exchanged, they all followed eachother on social media and took team pictures and videos together but he felt quite out of a place more than once.

The exception turning into Janez, who was a Slovenian goalkeeper for the team and was showing great promise, he was already the only company Dražen had made, both of them relating to personal struggles but Janez was getting much more positive attention than the Croatian who begun to suffer from all the media attention as if it wasn't what he had signed up for. He was a bit too aggressive on the pitch and kept that same cold attitude off the pitch but was surprisingly nicer than expected, the two only met on international friendlies though Dražen only became a senior player for Croatia about two years ago.

"Come sit, stop being so damn shy." He finally yelled at him from another table when he was eating, Dražen rolled his eyes finding it obnxious but a bit sweet nonetheless. He finally got up when the other teammates also cheered him on to sit with them at their tables that were really four tables and chairs turned so they could all face eachother somehow.

"Fine, fine." The Croatian grinned, secretly hoping this would really be the beginning of something great. "New kid is finally coming out his shell!" Antonio yelled proudly, the Spaniard whooping for him as Dražen sat a bit awkwardly near Janez who scooted over the chair so he had more room.

_This is the turning of a new leaf._

//

_Barcelona, Spain_

_August 17th 2017_

_8:20 PM_

_— _

_-: ✧ :-゜・．_

"Move, move, move!" Dražen screamed on the field before turning and running across the field and very well out running the Barcelona opponent who was marking him. The Catalan team was at even playing field in terms of score, 2 to 2 but they always had home game advantage even if the sea of Red and Blue had dents in corners with Gold and White flashes and Spanish pride screams coming from mainly Janez's side on the right side of the field.

They both had already qualified for the Champions League, the proper competition beginning soon even, however La Liga was now truly starting. Not like these games had any real fate but it was the greatest rival in sports history, any gloating rights would be welcome even with El Clásicos still planned, this was _far_ more fun.

"Here!" Dražen turned before he trapped the ball with his cleats and ran across the field, not exactly happy that the Barcelona defense was making Madrid run in circles as he was one of the few players approaching the goalie box. Luciano caught up, the Brazilian shouting before the Croatian had no time to make a choice and simply passed it before the Brazilian was knocked down, his hand in that tiny little penalty line that could help them win. 

The captain's both begun arguing as the Dutch referee came over, both teams screaming at eachother as Luciano stood put on the ground, grabbing his shoulder before standing up and shoving the Barcelona player on the floor who shoved him, Dražen and Martín though they were like a cat and dog in a game weren't fond of conflict and dirty play, even if they were rival's. The Argentinan grabbed his player as Dražen did the same, the referee blowing a whistle twice as the Barcelona player tried to take a swing. "Ay! Stop it!" The Argentinan captain screamed at his defender.

He got a yellow card before they blew a whistle and pointed at the box, making the signal before Dražen gasped and Luciano bit his tongue, trying not to cheer, a penalty was deserved, it was a full contact and his body or atleast arm was in the box. He patted Dražen on the back as he knew better, he always took the penalty unless their instincts said otherwise. 

The team's gathered behind him, Martín slyly smiling at Manuel who shook his head, the Chilean turning his back before jumping and touching the goal posts for good luck and giving a gesture to his Captain and boyfriend, "God if you are out there." He prayed against the post before tightening his gloves and cracking his neck and trying not to think about it too much. 

The referee came to the field and sprayed the white streak where the ball was to be put before Dražen wiped it with his away jersey, kissing the ball before setting it down and staring eye to eye with Manuel who seemed not the least bit intimidated but of course he wasn't, he had grown up in Barcelona from academy to senior team.

Time dwindled down by the second as the Croatian stood in front of the ball, the whistle blowing but he took a deep breath and smirked, before gently pacing to the ball before clipping the ball right through his hands as he tried his best to jump for the ball or hit it with his fists but it made it into the top corner and added that extra goal to the score.

_Real Madrid **3**-**2** Barcelona_

* * *

_21" **Fernández** 8" **Carriedo** _

_56" **Krleza** 70" **Hernández**_

_87" **Krleza** (P) _

* * *

Dražen grinned wildly running, as if they weren't still in Camp Nou as Luciano and Georgi both laughed and hugged him as he waved to the small sections of Madrid fans before seperating and running back on the field away from the off sides. Manuel kicked the ball angrily and shook his head, not like he could've done much to stop the Croatian starpower but it still felt insulting to miss any kind of penality.

"Good job Draž!" Antonio yelled, jumping around his back before Dražen laughed and gently shoved him off before they continued, the game was still going on, not for much longer but anything was possible in any amount of time especially when it came to this sport.

//

The final whistle had blown and Madrid had the extra three points bagged for their team in La Liga, now Dražen was much more concerned with the Champions League upcoming in just weeks, the draw being just the end of this week. 

"Good job Krleza!" Shouted Janez who came and jumped in his arms, not bothering to take his gloves off as the final whistle had been called, the team dancing around and exchanging handshakes or jersey's in some cases with the players. The Slovenian let himself down before they wrapped their arms' around eachother's shoulders smiling as they walked down the field and talked tactical, both of them far more concerned for the draw.

Dražen found Martín before he managed to exchange Jersey's with the Argentinian captain who tried to positively hide his frowns and sadness, he always acted as if every game was the damn Champions League final but that was yet to even come. "Good job." The Croatian said, shaking his hand and giving a nod before they continued walking before Dražen was stopped, being named Man Of The Match, a bit surprised it wasn't Antonio who had also scored or Janez who really made all saves happen on that field, the Slovenian waited for him, jokingly tapping on the glass as he was being interviewed by reporters, laughing and holding the trophy before escaping that black hole and walking all the way to the away lockerooms, being greeted by applause and cheering and screams of their fellow Madrid teammates. 

"The hero of Croatia strikes again." Georgi smiled, the Bulgarian throwing him his track jacket as Dražen had to roll his eyes, it was almost incredible what a change he had been through in almost six years at Madrid, it was only beginning. Constant awards and nominations for football prize's and money and new sponsorships but he didn't let it get to his head, he still remembered struggling to even get by a conference due to the influx of rude and snarky comments. 

"Man of the match." He rolled his eyes, holding his trophy and putting it near his phone as he changed, "Now it's the Champions League we have to focus on." The Reminder striking the team as Francis knocked, walking in and clapping lightly. They all sat, hoping the Frenchman wouldn't be too hard on them considering they had won fair and square.

"Good job." He directed to everyone, their coach smiling as he put a hand however, specifically on Dražen's shoulder. Francis looked over at one of his staff and asking about the bus situation, wanting to get home as soon as possible, as they all did, it wasn't just some ten minute drive away from Barcelona to Madrid. 

//

Tuning out Idriza's car music blasting Dražen scrolled through his Instagram as nothing came through to his ears, he ignored the mass flood of comments and tags before searching through the feed and internet for images of the game, wanting to post some. 

He stumbled onto a football website until scrolling a bit through it and finding Barcelona news that made him want to shivrel up and throw his phone out the window and into the highway.

_Barcelona manager sacked after uproar, to be replaced by former Juventus and Zagreb player, Enis Metikoš._

"No fucking way." He spoke aloud not realizing he didn't have to be so quiet about it, he was with Idriza anyway, "There is no fucking way this is real, he's too young!" He screamed before his sister lowered the volume of her Volvo, confused, the Madrid scarf wrapped around her shoulders falling off as she stopped at the highway stoplight to turn off the music and ask what exactly he was going on about.

"Enis is the new coach of Barcelona." 

Idriza gasped and felt her entire jaw **drop**, so much so that the car behind her honked for her to put gas as she ignored the flashing green light in front of her car. "Sorry!" She yelled before driving again, steading the wheel before laughing, "Seriously? They sacked the other guy pretty fast, they're in a rough stage I guess." 

"This isn't funny! My old teammate who hasn't talked to me in years and dumped every form of contact with me is suddenly the face of our greatest rival team." His eyes narrowed as the Bosnian beside him only sucked in a smile, "You're far too overdramatic, he is doing a job and if this is what he can do to break into football again, good for him." 

_Oh sure, good for him! He joked about it almost seven years ago in a Russian hospital but I guess he genuinely meant it judging by this article! Is that why he stopped all contact with me? He knew I would be mad or atleast bitter?_

"Sure." The answer coming through his own gritted teeth, he seemed a bit going to be a manager especially to a team that had players older than him for sure but, you never know, they could also sack him after Champions League, its truly always a toss up with that Catalan team. He felt a sense of betrayal, not even just him now being on the rival side but him completely not even mentioning he was clearly at Barcelona before hand, he always wondered why they had stopped contact and talking.

_This doesn't change a thing, I'm winning that fucking trophy this year_


	2. fools who ache

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> everyone is struggling and with the champions league upcoming and now drawn, it's down to the wire in preparations even if it means being proactive in fighting your own battles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh yes any excuse I get to write argchi I damn as sure will, so here we are! also enis, my love, mi amor, ljubav. I'm really just trying to knock it into this because I'm very interested in writing more teams and the actual games and playoffs with of course all the drama sprinkled in, enjoy !! xx - lily (ty ileana for keeping me sane) @leljaaa on tumblr

_Barcelona, Spain _  
_ August 22nd 2017_  
_ 6:23 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Martín yawned before setting his keys down on the marble countertop before racing in his socks carefully to the living room to turn on the TV to watch the draw for the Champions League, as if they weren't still talking at a million miles an hour about this defender and that goalkeeper, he boo'ed and rolled his eyes seeing them just talk about the format of the draw and why certain teams were in certain pots.  
  
"Calm down they're probably talking about what they're even doing." Manuel called out before dropping their bags at the doorstep and going to grab clean clothes for himself and throwing his gloves in their room, "I know!" His Argentinian partner called before yelling something slurred in Spanish over the phone to most likely Sebastían who just wanted to come over and watch with them, being stuck in traffic.  
  
The Barcelona plays had been rooming together since they were kids scouted in the academy, Manuel's beginnings much less rough then Martín but here they were, not just rooming together but living together. Football was cruel especially when it came to the idea of two teammates being together but after about six years everyone begun to think much less harshly of it, as if Barcelona would ever get rid of Martín who made this team what it is and brought in more than half of the sponsorships anyway.  
  
"Hurry up!" He yelled over the phone before hanging up and laughing before the Chilean threw his training clothes in a basket and putting on clean ones unlike Martín who seemed the absolute least bit bothered in his sweaty and dirty clothes. "Is he coming?" Manuel asked curious, grabbing an entire bag full of flavored chips and throwing him Pepsi as a joke but the Argentinian gave a roll of the eyes before genuinely opening it and taking a sip out of spite.  
  
"He will, just stuck in traffic but hopefully in the next twenty minutes he'll be here, I know they're gonna keep this talking going anyway." The captain spoke before stealing a chip before sitting on his knees on the couch seeing them showing off the pots, "Predictions?" He asked his boyfriend who only leaned back into their large couch, "Hopefully not Roma." He said referring to their semi final elimination to the Italian team last year, he had to shiver at the pure thought.  
  
"Don't say that in those household!" He said before doing a cross across his chest, Manuel laughing, "Should I get your shrine and candles out?" Martín hit him in the shoulder before the Chilean threw a pillow and smacked his face before he yelped, "Come back here!" He yelled snickering, grabbing his boyfriend's waist and kissing his lips, running a hand through his hair before hearing an aggressive knock at the door, they kissed one more time before Manuel shoved him, "Coming!" He yelled running over and opening the door to Sebastían who clutched a large resuable bag, "I brought food and drinks!"  
  
Martín looked at his cousin and laughed, "Is that why you're late?" He gave the Uruguayan a wide smile however seeing he brought wine and Malbec to be specific, three bottles to be even more exact. "God, are you planning on drinking all that or is it a housewarming gift?" The Chilean butt in as they hugged and picked up his bag before emptying it on the countertop, pulling out another bag of chips, sushi and countless sweets. It wasn't shocking considering the two had very big sweet tooths but he had to be the downer here seeing them settle on the couch and grab the alcohol and Sushi almost immediately, "You know we still have training tomorrow right?"  
  
"Yes and what about it? Self care!" Sebastían called before giving one to Manuel who reluctantly accepted though he was definitely the most fond of seafood, he could do without meat pretty well but seafood was a must have in the house constantly.  
  
"We're group D!" Martín screamed as if that was important, they were just drawing groups from the first pot anyway, not much importance there, they were fourth to be drawn since they were national champions for La Liga. Now it was matter of who else would be drawn with them.  
  
They talked as the rest past though Martín always had to try and keep full importance on other teams and try and worth out mathematics and bets even though a single match was not yet played.  
  
"And so it will be Atlético Madrid in Group A, Manchester City in Group B, Real Madrid in Group C, FC Barcelona in Group D, Napoli in Group E, Dortmund in Group F, PSG in Group G and finally, we have CSKA Moscow that will round out the first pot in Group H." The host announced before it cut to the graphics showing the arrangements. They sat in bated breath as now the real test begun with all the other pots randomized.  
  
"We begin with Bayern Munich!" The lady beside the host on the tv announced, throwing the paper to the side and now the two gentleman on the side mixing around the team selection balls to see which team it would be drawn in, "Seeing as each team is open and not full, we should have all 8 inside."  
  
This went on for a minute as one of the hosts struggled to twist it open before they showed it to the tv and Sebastían screamed, "Bayern Munich is in Group C! They will play reigning champions, Real Madrid." Manuel and Sebastían highfived, happy to escape their German loan team from the summer of 2014. "We continue on with Liverpool!"  
  
A few arguments later and they all sucked in a breath seeing it show Liverpool was to be in Group D with them. "Wonderful." Sebastían laughed, recognizing his old team of four years, they were a wonderful and formidable opponent when they weren't screaming at eachother and switching coaches constantly.  
  
"God damnit!" Martín looked over before taking a swig from the bottle of Malbec and cheering, "Now I'm good!" The Argentinian assured his boyfriend who pat his shoulders as they continued watching, noticing that no teams from the same league had been drawn into one group so far, though it was only the first two matches.  
  
//  
  
After about an hour and more commercial breaks then needed, they had their lineups and Martín sat in silence, feeling beyond intimidated at the lineup. He had to keep a straight face especially being the captain and face of the entire team, Manuel took a picture of the lineup as it shined across the tv screen.  
  
_**Group D:** _  
  
_ FC Barcelona **(ESP) **_  
_ Liverpool** (ENG) **_  
_FC Schalke **(GER)**_  
_ Shakhtar Donetsk **(UKR)**_  
  
Two suprising teams and ones who could be very shocking and surprise in a good way, especially Liverpool and their new manager who seemed to be making much better strides. "Don't worry, we will train and figure it out as best as we can." Manuel promised his partner who seemed a bit down, he sighed, "Another year, another season, it's just how it goes."  
  
//  
  
_Madrid, Spain _  
_ August 23nd 2017_  
_ 2:18 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Antonio passed the ball to Dražen who gestured him to keep going as he laughed, passing the ball as he nutmegged Georgi who only gasped and laughed wildly, the two running at eachother before the Spainard got hold on the ball and turned, kicking it into the goal past Janez's hands just barely, the force of the Bicycle Kick just too much.  
  
Dražen cheered wildly and hugged Antonio who got up and yelled for his own goal even though they were just in scrimmage currently.  
  
Their Champions League group was decently sized up, it was them, Juventus, Arsenal and Red Star Belgrade. Dražen felt a bit worried playing Belgrade for personal reasons but otherwise the talent was quite matched up. Janez since last night had spoken up about his nerve against having to play Lovino, the Italian goalie who captained Juventus to the final last year, they had won the League however that didn't mean Lovino winning best goalkeeper of the competition didn't make him beyond aggravated. Their rivarly stemmed from long before Madrid but it only _intensified_ once Janez firmly moved from Serie A to La Liga.  
  
"Ay! You'll do great, stop stressing." Georgi said before Janez caught the ball he tried to clip into the goal net, "I know that, I'm trying!" He responded with a hint of despairity in his voice before he punted the ball across the field to Antonio and Mogen who were shouting for one, they had extra's anyway. The Dutch man yelled a thank you as he gave the ball a header.  
  
"Atleast we're not with Barcelona!" Dražen laughed nervously, not wanting to think about it. Janez and Dražen had become increasingly close knit the last few years and were now like the conjuned couple who could never get off eachother but at the end of the day the Slovenian knew his real feeling would never get them anywhere.  
  
"I mean we have to prepare for that, hard group but I think they'll manage to qualify, United has been having a pretty down season the last year." He said as the three formed a small triangle and passed around the ball, trying to ignore the bitter heat.  
  
Dražen bit his lip and nodded, hands on his hips before he wiped the sweat from his forehead, the three Balkan men had all become some kind of trio and did most of the fun stuff that came with being a footballer together, otherwise it would usually be Antonio and Dražen since they were the most photogenic apperantly as social media and fan account's showed.  
  
He had yet to see Enis, hell if he had even yet to speak to Enis after word broke he was becoming the new manager, no in Real Madrid brought it up considering their rollercoaster history with eachother but secretly he hoped that somehow, someway they would meet and ignore every petty word spoken about eachother and the years gone by that were spent ignoring eachother out of fear.  
  
"Pose!" Yelled one of the social media managers before Dražen snickered and him and Georgi dribbled the ball back and forth to eachother, "Idemo!" The Croatian yelled teasingly as the Bulgarian was moving around to even catch the ball sometimes, Janez stood behind, pretending like he was actually doing something besides watching.  
  
They all got a picture together for the official Instagram account and smiled, Janez holding his gloves and in the middle as Dražen and Georgi posed beside him, you could tell who was this team's mediator and who just fucked around when camera's or coach aren't here.  
  
//  
  
_Barcelona, Spain _  
_ August 23nd 2017_  
_ 8:51 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Enis stumbled into his new house and looked around and shrugged, not really caring about the size, it was pretty nice how close it was to the training grounds and academy, a half hour at most with the underlying traffic. It was still very different from Zagreb for sure or even Turin, Italy.  
  
"Here we go again." He mumbled, throwing the keys to his Audi in a bowl near his door before groaning, throwing his bag on the ground and throwing himself on his grey sectional sofa, phone in hand. "Dugo se nismo vidjeli!" He whispered as he laid with no intention of getting up, being a coach had it's perk, yes, and his team was very well rounded but that didn't mean the pressure wasn't twice as bad as when he was an actual player, especially him being young.  
  
He turned on the television and didn't even pay attention, just flipped on whatever sports channel he would find, scrolling through emails on his phone before his cat jumped on the sectional and made her way to his chest, where she curled in to sleep. The first thing he saw on his own instagram was Dražen and he groaned so hard that his cat moved over to another part of the sectional. He felt his cheeks become red and he scrolled again and shook his head, "No, No, No." He reminded himself, "You'll see him eventually!" His laugh more one of self hatred than actual excitement for that date to come.  
  
Some kind of date with destiny, they would have to act so awkwardly okay with meeting eachother after years of submission and acting as if they didn't exist to one another. Though there was more than one reason for that.  
  
The first time they kissed they were absolutely wasted and black out drunk and were rooming together anyway and the second time happened and it was out of fear, fear that Enis would retire and leave him alone. The third time Enis tried to kiss back and Dražen refused, wanting to put his career and image first especially in a sport where this sort of thing was a taboo.  
  
Flicking a piece of cat hair from his outfit he sighed, fixing his messy hair and looking at the TV as they spoke about the lineups for the Champions League and what to expect as if the damn thing started, which it hadn't.  
  
He boldly saw Dražen's newest post come up on his Instagram and liked it, not like his life would surface any of the rest of his 21 million followers but hey, it was something. His smile grew wider seeing him so happy, Madrid was his dream team since before they had met even, he was definitely destined to leave Zagreb eventually.  
  
_ I'm still in love with the guy who's moved on far past me and whatever we had going on._  
  
His mind started to venture into new team worries and possible tactics to use, it was a standard rocky start to coaching today but as it should, he still had much to prove in the little time he had.  
  
The league was to start in a week with group stages and his team first had to be home for Manchester United which was quite nice always to be in Camp Nou but he was now responsible for their fate coupled in with the players and how they feel and mend together.  
  
_How can I be a coach and fight for my team and right to stay when I'm someone who's still fighting with myself?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed, hopefully we can see some of the premier league teams next chapter ;p !! xx - lily.


	3. the brink of breaking down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> champions league is stressful for everyone, especially for liverpool who needs to redeem themselves and for barcelona who is now leading with another new coach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for wait, theatre and school y'know !!! also me and ileana (who is my co-creator and helps me plan a lot of stuff and makes all the good memes) were talking alot about it, speaking of champions league, that draw. my favorite team, fav italian, fav german and a slavic (czech) team for drawn into one team, fantastic. so happy for zagreb tho - lily

_Liverpool, England _  
_ September 5th 2017_  
_ 6:36 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Vuk groaned, "Go!" He screamed to his teammates before bolting across the field, he was fast enough to slow down his Barcelona defender, Sebastían significantly while keeping the ball locked between his cleats, his custom cleats that he has recieved before the game so sweetly from some sponsorship, not like he was the one who kept up and cared for these kinds of things but free is free! "Alfred, you better fucking catch!" He said as he slammed the ball with the side of his cleat and hoped to make a clear pass to the confused American who hit the ball with his head, not wanting to take a chance with the Barcelona captain so near by.  
  
Vlad rolled his eyes knowing Alfred didn't mean to get so tense around Vuk and Martín, it was just he was young and confused but in football you had to keep your fear put aside, no matter the age or league, the Romanian yelled and kicked the ball across to their side of the field, yelling at Matthias to catch it which he had no trouble doing since it was only him and their fellow left back.   
  
The Danish goalie smiled at them and gave a thumbs up before punting the ball across the field back near the middle of the Liverpool side, being in home turf always made it a bit less scary, knowing no matter what happened in the first leg that you would always be supported and they could drunkly cheer at anything.  
  
Martín was beginning to get tired and not from really the game, he was an entire ball of energy during competition, this being no exception however he couldn't help but get tired looking at the Liverpool captain deliberately doing some questionable antics. Vuk was a respectable captain and player for the five minutes he was usually on the pitch before a referee would cock their brow and pull out a red card for the Serbian who at this point took it with a grain of salt.   
  
He burst across the field, stealing the ball from Jano who passed to his captain, the Georgian seeming to struggle a bit with the Liverpool Co-Captain all over him. Martín ran down the field, much to the screaming from the mainly red and white sections of Anfield. It seemed like he was alone besides Alfred who was doing a decent job of defending while some of their forwards all sprinted forward, he knew he should atleast give a shot a try, why not? He didn't have much to close even nearing the box.  
  
With a driven kick he saw the ball fly and caught himself on the field before to his surpise it went in or maybe not to his surpise but it happened as quick as it came into his head. He laughed and ran over, waving and running to the sideline cheering before Sebastían and Jano ran over, jumping over his shoulders and hugging him after he celebrated. He made eye contact with Manuel who clapped as if it was some kind of golf match but he still knew it was teasing.  
  
"Let's go!" He yelled before giving his teammates on the bench a quick high-five and smiling at Enis gave him a simple thumbs up, but he definitely seemed beyond proud, not like he had to impress his new coach in the first place, he knew his worth well enough. Gilbert wildly grinned, rubbing his captain's back and Martín had to smile seeing that small array of Catalan flags and Barcelona banners pop out now that he scored.  
  
"It's only 1-0 and we aren't even at half time, stop getting mopey!" The Serbian captain spat to his players noticing Alfred and Matthias in particular get in a more fraile status now letting Barcelona lead in their home turf. He ignored the pressing glare he could almost feel from their coach, Sadik, who now sat next to Gupta, talking to the Egyptian forward who sat right next to him, most likely telling him to sub in soon.   
  
Vlad laughed nervously, biting his tongue knowing how invertedly aggressive Vuk could be especially during games and competitions. "Defense tighten up a bit!" He said looking at their defender's intently, "Don't be marking like in training, just go and do the damn thing!" He said much more peppy and animated than his counterpart and captain.   
  
//  
  
Enis paced around trapping himself just outside the locker room, running a swift hand through his hair, he was absolutely gawked at the score so far. 2-2 for the team's, of course the First Leg was only the first chance but it could always be the difference in that first game.  
  
"Good job coach!" Yelled Gilbert excitedly, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him happily before Martín pulled his German teammate away and asked if he was doing okay, the Bosnian wasn't exactly sure what to say considering he had so far shot both goals with the second one an assist by Jano who was beyond proud of himself. "You're doing great, I don't think you should be so tense if that's what you're saying." He instructed calmly before his fingertips relaxed his shoulders, his posture was awful off the pitch especially when he was taking a break or at halftime but perhaps that was just Enis overreacting especially compared to his boyfriend who had to have always perfect posture and stance for a profession.  
  
"We're gonna beat them fucking raw!" Yelled Jano in the lockeroom, Enis winced and shushed him as he entered, Sebastían carrying it out more being inside, "Good job, I'm proud but don't be cocky." His eyes glaring directly at the Georgian who could only press his lips together in silence.   
  
"Listen to your captain and goalie is my main thing and issue with all of you, most of you." The stress in his voice made quite clear before Manuel coughed, butting in with pride, "Thank you." The Chilean expressed with absolute gratitude, aggravated that some of his own teammates still didn't listen or give him calls at times.   
  
"Keep it up and all of you, listen to your teammates and make sure you remember no matter what that we still have a second leg." He couldn't properly stress this enough especially being a former cocky player who would just hang by the thread of a match. They all nodded and said varying replies of agreement before Enis leaving them to change.  
  
The Bosnian stepped out of the lockeroom area, heading towards a deserted entrance, praying that no one especially intoxicated fans would drag him into publicity or pictures. He pulled out his cigarettes and sighed, lighting one and taking a long drag, it was very decent weather for Liverpool where it was known to be disgustingly muggy and rainy apparently. He felt beneath himself smoking again but it was more stress relief. He quit when he did football professionally after the academy. Enis could survive without it easily, he did for almost seven years before he just now gradually started to get back to old habits though no one could judge him now, especially considering he was from an entire culture filled with the smell of smoke.  
  
"Enis?" He screamed a bit, jumping back surprised. "Fuck!" Was the immediate reaction from his lips, stomping on the cigarette though it had barely been through the ring before he turned and felt the entire color drain from his face.   
  
"Hi—" the tone came a bit unsteady from Dražen who could only pretend to smile with upmost respect but absolute terror. Atleast he hid it well compared to Enis who was completely boggled out, "Hi Dražen." He replied, feeling all his muscles and jaw clench simultaneously. The Croatian had to smirk just a bit, "You came out of retirement early." It stung the Bosnian personally though he knew he was just making jokes like they always did, trying to start themselves up again.  
  
"You're funny for someone who's on Madrid." He spat more than replied though it got a hearty cackle from Dražen, who was dressed not in a jersey but more casual attire though he was just watching the game most likely with his sister and some teammate, not in the game, they had already beaten Munich 4-1 for the first damn leg.   
  
"I'm happy you're on your dream team." It came much softer than expected for the two former teammates who could only awkwardly rub their own arms and flush, looking away. "Shocked you care enough." The tension was beyond thick once he mentioned it. "You're acting as if I didn't express how much I care about you." He saw the Croatian's face completely brighten in shades of red once he referred to them making out in their old, Zagreb dorm. "Let's get drinks together, old times sake." He spoke up, Dražen staring intent. "I have a very fancy hotel room rented, perks of this job I guess, but it has plenty of alcohol even by your shitty standards." The smile that cracked from his face was enough of an indication that the Croatian was interested to.  
  
"Fine, then I go home because my flight is scheduled for one in the afternoon tomorrow. Send me your address." All this while pulling out his phone, brushing fingertips as he passed on his phone so Enis could put in the contact. He tried not to over think it, just breathing and doing what he asked for. "I'll make sure the alcohol is cold."   
  
"Fuck you!" Dražen laughed, punching his shoulder before again, they stared before Enis glanced at his watch, "Shit, I have to go but meet me!" He yelled, running back into Anfield and going out on the pitch to sit where the coach was designated to, talking to some of his benched players, making plans for his unused substitutions wisely. It was difficult to try and not scan the field and above for Dražen, out of the corner of his eye he eventually saw his figure, leaning back into his chair and grinning at his sister and whomever was with him to.  
  
_Fuck, he's still really handsome to, dammit!_   
  
The whistle blew before he even realized and he stood up, unable to sit still once a game was going on, wanting to be at the fore front of it all.  
  
//  
  
_ Liverpool, England _  
_ September 5th 2017_  
_ 11:19 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Hours later with photography and media Enis had stolen his old best friend to his hotel room, Dražen sneaking in by virtue of Enis's help, covering himself in hoodies and covering his face with a plain cap.   
  
Dražen poured another glass of wine and laughed, beyond glad for the experience, leaning into Enis who smiled, holding his best friend's waist, already feeling as if they were still at Dinamo Zagreb, living together just like those older times. "Congratulations!" He whispered, downing the glass before Enis put it down for him, grabbing his hand so he wouldn't touch any more wine, "Take it easy." He whispered before addressing the comment, "I'm proud of my boys what can I say."   
  
"I'm not a child, I'm a Balkan footballer." Dražen laughed, throwing his hand and pouring his cup with more alcohol before Enis slapped his wrist, prompting Dražen to listen. "Sorry, sorry!" He yelled before laughing at Enis shushing him, not realizing it was almost midnight.   
  
Ten minutes saw them continue a conversation to the couch where Dražen sat on his knees, right next to Enis who laid his in his lap and yawned, "But that's what I think about the entire scandal." Football was always a heavy topic considering their relationship and professions but it was fun to be with someone who understood his other interests and stuff outside of his life that wasn't directly related to the damn sport.  
  
"I missed you." He smiled, staring down at Enis, rubbing his hair and playing around with the ends. "Oh you're a damn superstar, stop acting like you truly thought about me." He laughed, though Dražen didn't find it too comical. "I did!" He whined, grabbing his hands as the Bosnian stood up to simply get water.   
  
Enis felt his mind completely flash back to them fighting in the dorm when he announced retirement officially until the two confided in eachother, admitting defeat and deciding to completely glue themselves together and make out on their bed before Dražen dropped the bomb that he didn't want to be distracted by this, he wanted to focus on a future and his career. So begun the pettiness and bitter but slow burning pit of seperation that lasted years and years.  
  
"Here's to you." He said humming, running a hand through Enis's hair and trying not to smile or make sudden movements, "I'm happy you're atleast back in the sport."   
  
"Do you wanna stay with me?" The Bosnian didn't expect those to be the words to come first from his mouth but he blurted them hazy the minute Dražen spoke to him, staring but the Croatian player blinked, "I'd feel awful, this is your room and you paid and all that, it's okay." He brushed off before Enis leaned in, grabbing his face gently, "Stop talking." He whispered, he must've felt some kind of bravery come from the alcohol and smoking.  
  
He was currently more impressed that Dražen hadn't pushed away or laughed, thinking this was some kind of awkwardly played joke that would intrude on his feelings but no, he stood very still and sucked in a breath, brushing their fingers together when Enis dropped his hands down to his waist.   
  
Silence was welcome in the awkwardness, the obvious blare of police outside ruining the moment just a tiny bit though for either of them it truly wasn't important.   
  
"Enis—" that was the final straw before he met his lips and kissed him, a hand on his face before Dražen pushed him, his fear rebuilding tremendously by the second. "I'm sorry." The Barcelona coach replied, acting as if they both didn't see this coming already. "Kiss me please."   
  
He barely replied before they both slammed their lips into eachother, trying not to act excited though Dražen's hand snaking around his hips was enough of an indication. "I'll stay with you." God, he had never been so happy to be impulsive and invite him over for what was just supposed to be a drink. "As much as you want, please." Lowly he spoke, though he remembered something about a flight tomorrow. He lifted up Dražen by his legs, the Croatian yelling and grinning before he picked him up, legs wrapped around his back before kissing him heavier.   
  
A few accidental slaps into the wall later came Enis practically throwing himself on Dražen on the hotel bed, how romantic and classy of an atmosphere this was. The Croatian was impatient and threw his tie off and blazer, tossing it to a side, unbuttoning his shirt as the other man kissed him lovingly, running his hands through his hair and trying to atleast have some fun with the situation.   
  
"You're still a good of a kisser as I remember."  
  
"You're turning me off faster each time you speak."   
  
Heartily laughing he threw his shirt somewhere around the floor and grabbed the player's waist and grinned, kissing the skin of his neck happily, completely emersed in the experience and praying somehow this wasn't just some hormonal one night stand that would lead to twice the awkwardness between them.   
  
Although the idea of them together already seemed a bit messy considering their team's, nationalities, positions and success. Discombobulated as ever, Enis looked down at his newly found lover, so he hoped, "I love you Dražen." Were the first words he let leave his lips, his own cheeks flushing red as he said it, not exactly expecting it; looking as pale as Dražen who stopped and stared at his face and eyelids.   
  
"How long?" The question seemed almost _silly_ but clearly he was serious. "If you want the honest truth, after we won the Croatian League when we first moved in together." He let it all out knowing there was something to come from all this, whether good or bad.   
  
"God, you're so fucking stupid." He opened his mouth to defend himself before he felt Dražen latch onto him harder, kissing him rougher and dragging his hands to his jersey, Enis getting the message. "I'm saying the truth!" He argued as their lips parted during the kiss.   
  
"Atleast now we're on the same page."   
  
//  
  
_Madrid, Spain_  
_ September 8th 2017_  
_ 11:54 AM_

_— _  
  
_-: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
"This is it." Emil spoke gently, gripping his suitxase, his duffle bag / carry on gripping over his shoulders as he blared music from his noise cancelling headphones, looking for his gate having passed all customs and security with little trouble, one of the officers wishing him a wonderful time with their Madrid team as he was on loan with an option to buy after a year from Manchester City.   
  
Young talent was always needed, it seemed every damn year the average of the players grew though some weren't that old but many were definitely in a knee deep puddle of retirement that was soon to come, he needed the experience and the money but not in a snobby way, he had everything he had wanted: his pets that were unfortunately right now in Manchester with his cousin, a salary, a fantastic season start with previous league champions, good ties with his family though his older brother was still over there killing it for Inter Milan as a goalkeeper, Milan not interested in giving away their best goalie in over a decade.  
  
He stared down at his phone, not wanting to make eye contact persay which sounded awful being a football player and for social media coverage he was going to be receiving excessively but he truly was just interested in playing, getting his two dogs over and finding his rental home he was paying an insane amount for, though that kind of money seemed a bit second nature at this point in his career, his 18 year old career.  
  
Finding his private car from the back entrance of the airline deck, he buckled up before letting the driver do the work, occasionally glancing at the drastic changes in weather and culture from Iceland, hell from England.   
  
He took a photo for his brother of a small market place, texting him a message that read: "It's cute here, Milan can't relate." Obviously joking he pressed send and drifted into a half awake, half asleep state trusting himself not to until he could get home before getting some well needed rest.  
  
Social media was powerful and it did feel a bit odd to see his photos for the graphics of the Real Madrid instagram that had over 76 million followers and counting, he barely had 2 million as is though for someone from Iceland, a country that was significantly smaller than even that number, it was impressive.  
  
He was halfway asleep staring at social media before he felt a tap on his shoulder from the driver telling him that they had just pulled into his new address. He was in a bit of awe seeing the house in person, apperantly one of his new teammates lived in the same area. "Thank you!" Came the words before he bolted out to get his suitcases and luggage.   
  
Dropping his suitcases and duffel bags inside the house, he smiled widely and couldn't get his eyes off how high the ceilings were, not like he was extremely tall but this was surely some kind of record for highest house ceilings if that shit even existed.  
  
"Not too bad." He mumbled, opening his suitcase really wanting to change clothing beyond anything else after spending a good amount of time in that plane.   
  
"Madrid, here we go!" He yelled to himself in the house, excited for what was to come and also beyond terrified but it was to be expected being 18 and moving to an entirely different country for the second time but he was a professional now, he had to keep all his emotions and fear intact.   
  
"Let's do this."   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed !! emil will definitely stick around, my tumblr is @leljaaa feel free to message me anytime xx - lily.


	4. thrill of first love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dražen and enis are having a strain on their relationship due to travel and lovino is starting to feel the pressure at juventus seeing his teammates not focus on the league.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just trying to set up some more games and teams lightly, really trying to set up this new secret relationship we got going on to, tumblr is @leljaaa as always, enjoy xx - lily.

_Munich, Germany_  
_ September 11th 2017_  
_ 7:21 AM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Dražen stared down at this phone, texting Enis as the rest of his team was leading the way towards their hotels, the Croatian was just a bit drowsy from the plane ride, he had a smile still plastered across his face however. Here for their second leg in Munich, the team was still determined to keep their record doing, having not lost a single game and not even a tie for any other team in their group. "We're gonna get that clean sheet!" Janez yelled for once in a state of absolute Euphoria, he so far had only let two goals slip which for him was important considering the media war between him and Lovino going on.  
  
The Croatian smiled at his best friend, who was walking near Antonio and Georgi who both had their headphones in, just tired and wanting to get some rest before putting his phone close to his face, occasionally looking up to make sure he wouldn't trip over a rock or fall into a lake somehow.  
  
His fingers slid across the keyboard as he continued typing to Enis, telling him to sleep and not worry, that they had landed safely and were just walking to their hotel, wishing him love. Enis was always a bit of a worry sport but he hadn't expected this to multiply five times as much when they decided to brush off all the possible side effects and become a couple, well— not a public one but they didn't want to take the chance so being secret was good enough for right now, they were both occupied anyway.  
  
"I love you so much." He breathed to himself quietly, ignoring the obnxious talks of Luciano and Arash up front, poor Francis keeping his composure by the damn thread. He sent the message and smiled, reminiscing a bit. He definitely stole atleast two of the Bosnian's jackets but it was what couples did, it was cute! Well, Dražen thought so. There was now atleast a small piece of him with him, his loving texts and pictures of him with Šuker, his cat back in Barcelona, were a good motivation and detachment from the stress that football could bring.  
  
It was only a five minute stroll that they found themselves in the hotel, it seemed nice enough though Dražen had learned that the nicest places to be for a game were Switzerland, Germany and Croatia. He may have been a bit bias for the last one but the service and staff and anything else that came to running the operation was technically flawless. Not like there was ever a bad experience, they were footballers playing for the most followed team in the world, no matter the destination they were treated like royalty.  
  
Janez and Dražen scrambled to the left elevator and laughed wildly, pressing all the floor buttons knowing they were at the top floor anyway, Georgi shook his head unamused but unsurprised at their antics as he entered with his duffel bag, he was a very light traveler compared to the rest of them who crammed far too much for a three night stay. The Slovenian and Croatian hugged happily, happy to see eachother again after a bit of a break. Though, Dražen was beyond glad he had a private room this time so he could actually call Enis and not have to just hide his phone in his voice.  
  
Dropping his luggage once he reached the room and swiped his key card, he collapsed on the giant bed, it felt comfortable but he wasn't as picky as say Antonio who would very quickly ask to be changed to a different room if the bed sheets weren't the dimensions. He grabbed his phone and saw a notification from Enis and smirked, opening it to a picture of him wearing a Barcelona jersey and having his cat on top of his head.  
  
He snickered, writing a reply: _Šuker looks good, you look very good just minus the jersey._ He turned off his phone and sighed, still a bit sore from doing things with Enis a few days ago. Their flight was delayed so Enis stayed extra nights with Dražen and they definitely caught up in more ways than one.  
  
The reports expected atleast less of a gap for Madrid to win since one of their best players was finally off injury and was supposed to play tomorrow at the game. Dražen personally had faith in his team to do the same damage as before but you never knew with these kinds of things, every little factor could determine a win or lose or draw, which no one wanted, it was the most bland way to go out.  
  
His phone gave that little notification chime and this time he had two, one from Enis and from his sister, Idriza who probably had just landed to come watch. His cheeks flushed reading his partner's response: _You also look better without a Madrid one, you look better without anything on but that's just me._ He tried not to reply with something extremely witty, biting his lip and replying with a: _Stop flirting with me over text, save that for when I see you xx._  
  
Turning his attention to his sister he smiled, seeing a picture of her in the terminal gate, telling him indeed that she was here and even met one of the wife's of a Bayern player at the airport. He texted the hotel address and got up from the bed to change into far more casual clothing, washing his face and brushing his hair just a tiny bit, he honestly wasn't as pampered as people assumed, he just liked to be clean.  
  
"All good." He mumbled to himself after changing into his casual clothing, putting on his shoes that were absolutely endorsed by Adidas before walking out the door with his wallet that had his money and keycard, taking his phone before locking the door and knocking on Janez's door.  
  
"Yes?" The yell came before he ran to open the door slightly, not fully clothed. "My sister is here, you have ten minutes to change if you want to come get breakfast with us somewhere, not sure where but downtime is good." The Slovenian put up a hand and nodded, knowing that meant for him to say no more.  
  
Exactly nine minutes later came Janez who seemed overdressed as usual but still looked nice. "Alright." He said before Janez texted Georgi to tell coach they were getting Idriza from the airport, not like they were training until later, everyone decided to train near six today so they could have downtime from landing.  
  
So far so good in Munich, Dražen hoped it would stay that way.  
  
//  
  
_Turin, Italy _  
_ September 12th 2017_  
_ 3:41 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Lovino turned his attention to his teammates and spoke up, punting the ball across the field, "Start focusing!" He yelled not in a rude tone but just a bit angered that they were lacking in interest during training. As a captain and goalie it only stung twice as much, they had won the first leg barely and had tied their second game by the skill of a penalty shot, the Italian was not proud of himself though he loved his team dearly.  
  
What acted on his aggresion twice as much was that Janez, his favorite person to pick on and fight with over social media was currently the one to best with the most clean sheets. Janez was very talented, Slovenian's we're known to be good goalies, something in the mountain air he had guessed but it didn't make the Italian less petty watching him do absolutely killer saves and jumping with all his force to make sure that ball stayed out the damn net.  
  
"We're gonna make it out these group stages or so help me!" He yelled before throwing a ball to Berwald who yawned, the Swede nodding, "We will If they focus." The striker said, focusing on Šćepan who seemed a bit lost after transferring from Liverpool. "Don't you dare look at me because I'm telling you, I only just came so your team not focusing isn't because of my shit." He spat at the Italian who felt complete fury in his eyes, it's exactly what he expected for someone related to Vuk, the captain of Liverpool who channeled all his anger in games and was the record holder for most red cards.  
  
Šćepan huffed and ran a hand through his hair, not exactly in his comfort zone currently. His cousin was always a help even with their family issues but he was definitely glad to get his own chance to be himself and not have to follow around orders from him constantly. Italy seemed the best choice in his mind as the transfer window opened, he spoke Italian because of school, spent a decent amount of time in the country considering his cousin, Lindita, who now played for the Liverpool female team instead of Milan, lived there and always watched Serie A as a child.  
  
Lovino tightened his gloves and wacked the pole, jumping up and touching it before turning his attention to their squad that was gathered, "Listen, we haven't been doing our best let's be totally honest here, I'm not placing the blame and never will place the blame on one particular person but we have to change our attitudes and training mindsets, I want to win that fucking trophy, who's with me?" He asked as the team belted and cheered wildly, "Good!" He yelled before instructing them to get behind the box, wanting to practicing shooting.  
  
"Janez is going down this year."  
  
//  
  
_Munich, Germany _  
_ September 12th 2017_  
_ 10:32 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Enis groaned, landing in the airport, not exactly focused on the airport. They had a day exactly before Barcelona had to be buckled down in Schalke, Germany to play their German opponents. The Bosnian took the chance to go and surprise his lover for atleast 23 hours if he could race to his hotel, Dražen was unaware he was coming but his tendency to send a million pictures a minute led him to find the hotel quickly.  
  
Schalke was luckily just a one hour flight in estimate and they had to be there to check in around 10PM, the Bosnian grabbed his small carry on suitcase and ran hopeful to find a taxi quickly and without troubles.  
  
A grusome twenty minutes later he got out, his travel lag was absolutely horrendous and it proved right when he threw up in the back of the Uber. The same thing happened on the flight to Liverpool where his team and crew learned of his issues with traveling though he could prep himself well. He groaned, tipping the driver an extra hundred euro's for only trying to joke about it and not worry about it. He threw on another jacket before going in and being approached by the front desk, he stated that he was visiting his cousin who gave him an extra room card, they seemed weary but let him go anyway, the flush on his face must've given atleast something away but he bit his tongue and took off his hoodie after entering the deserted elevator, pressing the highest floor, and taking a mint for himself and drinking water to not dehydrate himself after barfing in some poor man's uber.  
  
Exiting the elevator he smirked and excitedly made a run for his partner's door, knocking twice quietly. He felt someone's footsteps and prayed he had the right room or this would be embarrassing. The minute he saw that auburn hair and surprised look, he was beyond words thankful and Dražen kept his mouth open before Enis made a movement and the Croatian grabbed his hand and pulled him inside, locking the door tediously before throwing himself on his lover, kissing him wildly and wrapping his hands around his neck as the Bosnian dropped his bag and picked his partner up by the legs and wrapped his legs around his back, trying to navigate this huge room, just wanting to find a bed or atleast a couch.  
  
He settled on a couch, pulling away from the kiss before Dražen smiled widely, "You're too good." He whispered, pushing his hair back from his face before Enis shrugged, "Just a small layover is all." Their lips pressed again, turning and tossing eachother before they got comfortable, Dražen pressing his hand to his chest and pulling at the hem of his shirt, the Bosnian laughing as he pulled away so the Croatian could completely strip him down. "You're not one for talking are you?" He teased before Dražen scoffed, "My lover comes to surpise me at my damn hotel before a game, I don't think talking would be the right response, do you?"  
  
Throwing the shirt on the floor Enis smiled, pulling him close and running his hands down and up his hips, "I'm just like a football trophy wife." He joked before Dražen slapped his shoulder and they kissed passionately, feeling themselves turn towards the couch, the Madrid player sitting on his lover's lap as the other felt the player's legs wrap around his back as they kissed.  
  
"I love you so much." Dražen felt himself mutter as Enis kissed his jaw, the Bosnian pulled back and felt himself still get beyond red hearing it, he gently inlocked their fingers, "I love you more but I have to leave tomorrow since I have to be in Schalke so I have to miss your game."  
  
The Croatian frowned, feeling his heart break just a bit, wanting his partner to atleast watch it live, "I swear I'll catch whatever I can at the airport and hotel." He said, kissing his ring finger which made Dražen grin a bit.  
  
"Hopefully you won't miss too much considering they're down 3 goals from our last meeting." Casually making ideal conversation as the Croatian took his jersey off from training, Enis kissing his chest and smiling against his skin feeling Dražen breathe in a bit. "You are always beautiful but you're twice as beautiful without any Madrid gear on." He teased before assuring his lover he was indeed joking around.  
  
"You talk way too much." Dražen groaned as he felt his fingers run through his hair, staring at him until he kissed him again.  
  
//  
  
Enis yawned, turning over and snickering seeing Dražen so close to sleep, he kissed his cheeks and wrapped his arms around his waist securely before the Croatian felt his movements and smiled, almost burrying his face in the crook of his neck, giving a kiss to the base of his neck before leaning back, trying not to drift away to sleep.  
  
"Would you ever move in with me?" The breathy words came out and made Enis stop completely in his tracks. He was more surprised than upset that Dražen would suggest it. "Of course I would, if you weren't a good four to six hours away."  
  
The Croatian kissed his lips and held his face in his hands, completely making Enis melt in his fingertips. "Please, I'll move to Barcelona with you." They kissed, not wanting to think about living away such a decent distance. "No, no, you're a player. Let's think about this when we are at the group stages okay?" He said before they met hands and shook on it, leaning back into eachother.  
  
He knew Dražen would probably have to explain himself if any of his teammates saw the complete trail of bites and marks across the skin of his chest and thighs but he hoped the Croatian would be smarter than to just change completely showing off all his hickeys in front of teammates who were already probably nosy as is about the great Dražen Krleza's love life.  
  
"I love you." He whispered to the Croatian, "Volim Te." Dražen replied, wrapping the covers over them and smiling, rubbing the skin of his shoulders before Enis grabbed his own phone, taking a sneaky picture with his phone, wanting it for a keepsake and for himself.  
  
Weariness and being caught was consistently on his mind, he knew that couples could do it in this sport. Hell, Martín and Manuel were doing it every damn day and they faced slander but they still kept that bank full of sponsors and cash and weren't put down anymore over it, they proved their skills and that love is just love, it doesn't have to affect their careers as drastically as fans and media think it does.  
  
This was a bit different however. He was a manager and although they were barely two years apart in age only, he knew that was beyond a difference than just two players on the same team. Not to mention they played for the biggest rival's in football history, it would go under fire just for that alone. Then there was their background as two Croatian league players, from and playing for a Catholic majority country which wasn't the nicest and most progressive, not that Dražen wasn't damn proud to be Croatian captain and born and raised in such a gorgeous country but it stung twice as hard to know his people would never support him. Enis had it twice as bad since he was a Muslim boy from Bosnia and Herzegovina who already got in trouble for speaking his mind on social media on the same things that Alfred, an American player, was praised for.  
  
Despite the blantant issues at hand, all those rampant fears seemed to completely melt when he smiled, it was beyond the cheesiest thing Enis had.ever thought in his life but it was true. Even as best friends, nothing made him happier than training and living with him, now they were back to that stage but in a much more intimate way.  
  
This however had to come second, for both of them, they both understood the pressure and careers they had, which was good. Dražen had to train and play and Enis had to be constantly somewhere and be at every game, once group stages dwindled down, they could focus a bit more on eachother.  
  
He closed his eyes and sighed, seeing Dražen asleep beside him peacefully, feeling nothing but a sweet assurance.  
  
"Volim Te."

// 

[ ABSOLUTELY had to include! ]

<https://www.instagram.com/p/B14DaG8Ca64/?igshid=mzw0t2kf7b9e>

look at this absolutely STUNNING art my dear girl Yuli (@yuliiverse on Instagram) made of this au / fic for me???? I am absolutely positively shaken and it's beyond words beautiful, go support her and her slav week on tumblr! 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed !! isn't that art fucking gorgeous? my girl yuli really outdid herself for this art, I yelled and cried definitely and intentionally wanted her to draw enis as a player but don't worry, no spoilers or future plot points revealed lmao xx - lily.


	5. voulez vous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> šćepan is feeling the heat from a new crush, dražen is full of pride and lukas has never felt so confused in his entire career.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please enjoy this one xx quick updates because y'all are sparking my interest! my tumblr is @leljaaa and thank you for the sweet private messages and comments, it really motivated me. xx - lily.

_Zagreb, Croatia _  
_ October 17th 2017_  
_ 6:05 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
The whistle blew and Dražen felt all his sanity melt away and he sobbed into his hands, wiping his eyes and laughing when all his teammates and staff slammed into eachother in one big puddle, the rain had not stopped them from completely demolishing Italy at a total of **5-3** at home for the World Cup qualification. The Adriatic rivarly was finally in a full swing, 3 red cards later and they had come to the stopping point, Dražen scoring 2 of their goals.  
  
He felt nothing but pride and waved around his flag before he was completely demolished and ambushed by world wide media and cameras, asking how he felt, if he would captain the squad, all of that black and white area. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Lovino who hadn't even moved from the goal post, looking like he was crying or very close to, understandably.  
  
He answered with that famous grin and his menu of witty responses before exusing himself as they begun interviewing a fellow midfielder and their coach. "Lovino!" He yelled before running across the field that had supporters still throwing drinks, sparking flames, flags waving, everything. The Italian winced acknowleding his presence. "Good job." Was all that came from his mouth before Dražen had to atleast chuckle, not laughing at his misery but how down he was. "Don't be so down, there's always EURO 2020 and now you should really work on qualifying with us in the Champions League, you guys are close." He patted his shoulders before they exchanged captain armband's with just a hint of despairity.  
  
"Thank you." For someone who was usually so prideful and well, loud, this was quite an unpleasant reaction but they had won the World Cup in 2014, Lovino lifting the trophy at only 21 and making an entire country scream his name, A Ballon D'or winner.  
  
He begged his brother who was still a bit confused and upset to take a picture, the other Italian nodded and told them to atleast smile which they did, posing with their gear. "Thank you!" He said before waving and meeting his sister who was already in tears, "Oh my god." He screamed before meeting her and swinging her around happily. Idriza slapped his shoulder and cried into his chest, "I can't believe it!" She wiped her eyes, saying she was being careful because she just got her nails done for the event and she did, red and white checkerboards adorning her nails.  
  
They wrapped their arms around eachother's shoulder and beamed with pride, Dražen waving to the stands and laughing at the ear piercing screams and cursing in Croatian, for once it's what he had dreamed about. "Ay!" He yelled to his teammates, the squad talking about celebratory dinner and lots of alcohol though it seemed they already had thrown around an entire bottle of Rajika in the lockeroom.  
  
"Let's go." Idriza said nervously grinning at their completely wild state, Dražen nodded after grabbing his things and could only think about the fact he was leaving Enis at his house, he decided to not come only because he still felt a bit unwanted by the team. The Croatian understood and they both wished eachother luck and then he was out the door, Enis sending him encouragement at halftime when they were tied.  
  
The dream had come true, he was going to be leading his squad to the World Cup, it was a bit hard to focus on downtime now that the Champions League group stages were ending and World Cup qualification was over, now it was time for absolute ruthless competion, he only hoped for the best, still intent on winning the Champions League trophy even if it meant facing his own lover as a possibility.  
  
//  
  
A few hours later he stumbled into his studio he still had in Zagreb for national team purposes and laughed as he threw his keys down in disbelief.  
  
Dražen closed the door to his old house and laughed, seeing Enis completely scream and melt down in tears when he came through the door in his national team training outfit. they both smiled heavily, the TV still loudly playing but not giving a damn they still ran to eachother, Enis opening his arms and slamming into eachother, kissing happily.  
  
"Congratulations captain." The words were almost some kind of euphoric ending for Enis who had been dreaming of this day for this lover to finally captain and qualify for the World Cup. He had to completely melt seeing his lover score the game winning goals and captain his side to victory against Italy for god's sake. "You should've been there with me." He almost whispered, staring into his eyes as Enis put him down gently, wrapping his arms around his waist and sliding them down. "I wish I could but now I'm happy knowing that you will have your dream."  
  
They hadn't seen eachother prior for about two weeks, far too busy with the Champions League: Real Madrid had not lost a single game and only drew two, securing their place already for their group to go to the knock outs, Barcelona was close, one more win and it would be a killer start for Enis who had just begun coaching months ago. The Bosnian smiled and put his hands on his lover's cheeks before kissing his lips intently, the Croatian kissed back before pulling away and grinning, "So—" he said with his fingers twirling around the collar of his shirt, knowing exactly what he wanted.  
  
Enis had an inch or two what he was gonna say but played the fool for him, "So?" He lead on before Dražen hooked his arms around his neck and smirked, "You know exactly what I'm gonna say." They both flushed, the taller man grinning down, "I know, you're just funny when you're so impatient and needy."  
  
He earned a slap on the shoulder from his lover before they slammed lips and ran their fingers through eachother's hair, Enis was beyond the realm of pride: that could've been him on that field to but alas, sometimes things didn't go as planned and that was okay, now he could go and support his lover and not just stay at home, wishing he went.  
  
"I'm still beating you in the Champions League." He teased, Enis widening his eyes and dropping his jaw just a tiny bit offended, "Oh we will see about that." He picked his lover up and swung him around, smiling against his lips before laughing and racing to the bed, Dražen squealing, "Motion sickness!" He teased referring to Enis's often inevitable sickness he got on any car, plane, train, bus even since they were rooming together.  
  
"I'm going to destroy you and I mean more than just the league." He intentionally left open for him to reply before Dražen felt his cheeks go a rosy red color, "And that's exactly the kind of response I was expecting." His hands ran through his hair and I felt something slip, "Can we finally talk about living together?" Enis blinked, not exactly expecting it in the middle of a make out that was escalating. "Yeah, yeah." He assured, helping Dražen up, both of them leaning against his bed frame and facing eachother.  
  
Enis didn't find this situation ideal at all but he knew eventually they had to talk about it and it would have to be soon so it didn't bother Dražen so much. He kissed his lover's cheek and rubbed his shoulders as he spoke softly, clearly thinking about the situation with importance.  
  
"I love you so much." He started before the Croatian scoffed knowing exactly what that would entail, "Ljubav you're six hours away!" Dražen felt his entire posture drop, he was absolutely right. He wiped his eyelids and it made Enis jump to his face, wiping his eyes nervously. "Hey, we'll figure it out." He promised, taking and kissing his hand softly. "It's too much to think about right now for you, you have to focus on too much right now, don't let this make you sad please." His pleads met with a small smile and nod.  
  
"Me and Šuker will figure it out." He swore, feeling his heart pound seeing Dražen smile at him. "Worst case you can ask for me to be transferred." He laughed, "You think I'm bad now, if you were on my damn team imagine how often you'd distract me."  
  
//  
  
_Turin, Italy _  
_ October 19th 2017_  
_ 3:12 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Lovino had been dealing best he could with the fact of the matter: Italy was not going to the World Cup, he wasn't going to captain his team at the world's biggest stage, he was going to be home unless he really felt a need to go and watch, which was not his style. He had gotten a bit more over the fact after crying for an entire night, the articles and photos with his face plastered all over social media not helping, when his teammates really reached out to him and made sure training today would be extremely focused on one thing: the Champions League.  
  
"Run, run, run!" He yelled at Šćepan and Vash who came running down the field, Vash starting with the ball but Šćepan was faster. He snaked the ball under and trapped it before ramming his cleat into it near the penalty area and shooting, Lovino jumping and blocking the shot. The Montenegrin rolled his eyes but clapped for him as did his teammates before he gave a good gesture to Vash who ran to the back of the line with him.  
  
It was about an hour later tht Šćepan sat on the turf, tieing the laces of his cleats before getting up and noticing someone from the corner of his eye that caught his attention, it wasn't unusual to see a woman roaming the training grounds, they had a large female staff especially at the grounds themselves but she didn't seem as if she should've been here, not that Šćepan minded, he stayed completely glued to her, she was incredibly beautiful as shallow as that seemed.  
  
"Who are you staring at?" Lovino asked, almost knocking him over when he spoke, "Oh, no one." His voice clearing after he felt himself completely strained, she walked closer and he smiled before Lovino gasped, "I know who that bitch is!" He whispered before taking his gloves off, Šćepan wondering if he should run to stop him or he is just playing.  
  
He felt his entire heart drop recognizing her as Lovino took her for a hug, "Idriza! I heard you're considering the move from Madrid." Šćepan was very caught up on women's football since his cousin Lindita played for Liverpool, as did his other, more annoying cousin Vuk. But clearly he was entranced far too much to realize that was indeed Dražen Krleza's sister. Not only did Vuk only bitch about him, being bitter rival's but she was a firm competitior to Lindita.  
  
Idriza put on a smile while greeting Lovino who came to introduce himself again, he seemed in a better state than the game vs Croatia which was good though the Bosnian girl could only smirk, thinking of his crushing downfall. "I am here actually to work out the terms." She admitted, not like she had much to hide. Either she would become a Serie A player or she would stick to Madrid with her brother.  
  
"Nice to meet you, I know you from my brother's games." She directed it towards Šćepan adding about Lindita as well before he froze, grabbing her hand firmly and shaking hands with her, "Nice to meet you, it's my honor." He let go before completely blanking and just staring at her, staring at her enough that Lovino coughed obnxiously for him to just breathe, Idriza laughed quietly to herself before she smiled at him, his face turning red. "You'll be a good addition." He added smirking before turning and almost praying to god that he didn't act like such a damn fool in front of her.  
  
"God damnit." He breathed out before wiping the sweat from his face, running to the other side of the field to continue training though he would look back a few more times to see if she stuck around to watch, as stupid of a thought that was.  
  
_But_ she did.  
  
//  
  
_October 28th 2017_  
_ 11:10 PM_  
_Zurich, Switzerland_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Enis tightened his tie and groaned. He truthfully was not about all the fancy and the preppy events that came with this kind of leadership— that came with football really. Sure, everyone wanted to win a Best Player or Best Coach award, that didn't mean everyone wanted to dress up and attend the damn carpet, spend an unreasonable amount of travel time to see cringey hosts go up and do a gig for three hours when it should last about ten minutes.  
  
He had sat in this seat for about two hours now, thankful to get up and go to the after party, he needed booze. Switzerland was a gorgeous country when you had downtime not when you were rushing through a terminal for some award ceremony, though he decided to book the extra day tomorrow as well to have with Dražen, who was beyond proud to win Best Player this year. The Bosnian could only smile, wanting to absolutely kiss him and say how proud he was after this damn party.  
  
Footballers and coaches and those in the sport were very, very different when media was away and all the journalists were gone. This was proven greatly by Antonio drunkly jumping into Luciano's shoulders, "I was robbed but I'm so happy for Dražen!" He yelled, taking another shot with his Brazilian teammate.  
  
"You'll be nominated this season." Manuel spoke, gripping a very bitter looking Martín by the arm. "You will." The Argentinan captain agreed as his lover spoke for him, smiling. "Thank you, congratulations on your nomination."  
  
Enis focused on finding his own boyfriend who was probably being bombarded by his Madrid and Croatia teammates. Unsurprisingly so, he had Janez right next to him, he decided to play detective a bit and lean back and just sip his drink, occasionally making blank conversation with fellow coaches, eyeing his boyfriend intently and wanting to completely murder the Slovenian goalie whenever he even got close to him.  
  
The Bosnian definitely felt his jealously all rapture when Janez laughed and put an arm around his shoulder, Dražen awkwardly letting it sit there before slyly taking his hand and mouthing what looked like a _"you're so tipsy."_ to his best friend. He knew Dražen was smart and would never betray their trust but he didn't trust Janez for a second.  
  
Enis always felt his heart twinge of jealously or anger when they posted pictures looking all like a happy couple on social media, far before Enis and Dražen even spoke again. His worst fear was that he would eventually fall for him since there wasn't many other choices in that spectrum.  
  
"I know! Jesus." He laughed, hugging his best friend and kissing his head before feeling himself completely drift into a stance of sleep, Dražen waking him up and making him stand before locking eyes with Enis who looked like he was about to rip his best friend's throat out. _I'm sorry, this isn't on me!_ He mouthed before gestured Enis to come over by the back entrance, his lover assuming they were just going to take him back to his room, safe.  
  
"Nice to see you here, is that your boyfriend?" Enis asked with a tone so forced wirh jealously that Dražen almost laughed to be completely honest. Fifteen minutes and three screams later, they had gotten Janez into his hotel room above the grounds of the party and ceremony and made sure they slid the key card after they locked the hotel door.  
  
The minute they locked the door Dražen felt his entire body pinned against the wall before Enis slammed their lips together, the Croatian pulling away quickly not wanting to be at all caught before letting that fear go and pulling himself back into his boyfriend who tightly held his waist and ran a hand through his hair, going down to his cheek.  
  
"I'm not surprised you won but I am surprised at how good you look in a tux, thank you for that visual." His tone much more soft and wanting than usual, Dražen, feeling extremely arroused, only smirked and grabbed his tie with his fingers, pulling him close to his face, "Shut up and take me to your room."  
  
He took his hand secretively before pulling him into the empty elevator and pushing the room button once inside before they kissed again, the one good part of not being open besides the thrill was that no one had to endure the obnxious PDA they were facing on a daily or atleast weekly basis. Enis took off his lover's blazer and held it in his hands as he used it to pull Dražen closer to him, the Croatian extremely impressed and kissing him harder before the elevator dinged and they seperated quickly out of fear that someone was waiting, no one was.  
  
They giggled before entering his room still holding hands and dropping all their bags and clothes on the floor, locking the door and letting Enis stare at him with loving eyes, leading him to the bed he had in the hotel room. They sat next to eachother, kissing and touching affectionately as possible, beyond comfortable with eachother now.  
  
Sometimes Dražen would worry, he'd worry a lot. That one day he would wake up from the sex and all the loving talks in bed, the kissing would stop and Enis would get bored or say that this was too stressful to continue. Which he would completely understand: this wasn't just some schoolboy romance, this was a legitimate relationship and they were two working professionals with a huge fanbase.  
  
"I love you." He breathed once Enis kissed his neck, leaving gentle imprints before Dražen bit his lip nervous, "You'd never leave me right?" The question was enough to make Enis almost instantly perk up without notice. "Leave you?" The question almost scaring him, hands on his lover's cheeks as he looked down too anxious to speak out.  
  
"Dražen what's going on? Why would you ever say that." Fear taking over concern as the Croatian looked up and licked his lips, "Because this is too much to handle! You're a fucking coach, my rival's coach and I'm scared that us being open would destroy your career and everything you worked to get back!"  
  
Enis laughed, "You don't think I've already been absolutely hammered by media already? About how the Bosnian boy was taking over an entire legacy: how I'm too dumb, too young, too inexperienced?" He brushed his finger across his partner's jaw. "They've destroyed my image, I worked hard to get back at the chance of seeing you, loving you. You're everything I've never wanted." Dražen's entire body was like a candle now, melting away and softening for his words. "I love my job, my team, I love you. If I got fired, then guess it's easy to say where I'm moving."  
  
"No I wouldn't leave you, I don't even have the thought. I wake up, I see you right next to me, often naked which is a plus for me—" he winked as the Croatian gave a grin, winking back. "But you're smiling, you look happy and with me? That's all I wanted from the beginning." Kissing his ring finger, he tugged Dražen by the arm to kiss him, they both laid down now, fingers interlocked as they continued to kiss and kick off eachother's clothing, this was definitely better prize than any damn awards show.  
  
//  
  
Emil completely downed himself in alcohol and cheered relentlessly, tugging at Antonio and Luciano who only encouraged him as they were twice as drunk. "You're a pretty heavy weight!" The Brazilian yelled before they all collapsed into burning fumes of laughter.  
  
The Icelandic Madrid player was having quite the season already, this gala was proof that you were never too young or old to drink, he downed two more shots before taking a clear sip of water to cleanse himself just a bit.  
  
"Emil!" He heard someone yell from worry, from anger. "Oh shit." He grumbled knowing who that would be, he felt his face go pale seeing his own brother so worriedly coddling him. "Emil, I know you want to have a good time but jesus, you're taking it too heavy."  
  
"Fuck off!" He yelled but over the music it wasn't clear or loud enough, "I'm not a kid, I'm not your younger brother anymore, I'm an adult who's now making a name for himself without you here!" The Norwegian could only furrow his brow and have a disapproval across his saddened smile.  
  
"I'm proud of you, you are growing up and you're gonna be an amazing player but my god, you ever disrespect me like that again, even when drunk." He warned before shedding some skin, "Don't blame me for your problems. I'm sorry to break the news that according to basic human law and biology, I am and will always be the older brother, sorry about it." His sarcasm cut thick as his accent.  
  
"I'll be glad when people stop comparibg me to you! You're a damn goalkeeper but still I'm compared to you as a striker!" He choked on tears before Lukas shook his head, "Hey, let's go, please." He didn't fight a new revolution over the idea of leaving so Lukas took that as a win before he protectively put an arm around his shoulder and bringing him to his hotel room, he was right across from Lukas and from Dražen if he needed anything drastic.  
  
The Icelandic player found his way to a bed and completely collapsed from alcohol and from complete and utter tiredness. "Goodnight Lukas." He heard in a faint slur but the Norwegian would take that anyday. He left him a sticky note next to some tea packets to tell him how damn foolish he was with alcohol.  
  
"Goodnight." He said smiling before closing the door and hearing some kind of aggresive kissing and moaning, he wasn't surprised but it wasn't his business to peak around anyway. "Not the worst I've heard on a hotel floor." He reminded himself before opening the door before catching a glimpse from his eye and completely in awe, struck by surprise that it was a damn player, one he knew well for that fact and his what had to be boyfriend who was damn well a coach.  
  
_ Yes, I have to be drunk. I am definitely drunk, they're definitely beyond drunk, this is just a wild night._  
  
"Holy fuck." Lukas spoke with anxiety before locking his hotel door and taking a glass of water for himself before leaning against the marble countertop in the room, "No way."  
  
He always smelled that high tide of tension between Dražen and Enis especially when they played together, there was a difference between hugging and hugging, brushing hair from the face and staring into his eyes intensely. Lukas should know but they were probably drunk, right?  
  
He sure hoped so, this would be one madhouse of a case if it was true and not some drunken act.  
  
"They're gonna be given hell."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh no the gays! I swear I'll focus more on other stuff soon but y'all sleeping real good on them but I swear, more teams soon!! hope you enjoyed xx - lily.


	6. good intent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> arthur has a big announcement & dražen is beginning to feel the pressure from his career and social media.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello!!! a bit of a wait but school and theatre but I've been working on it and hitman au, lina, my sweet wifey, has been drawing some amazing stuff for it and has definitely influenced some ideas for the fic but I hope y'all enjoy xx - lily.

_Liverpool, England _  
_ November 2nd 2017 _  
_ 8:02 AM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
"I'm retiring after this season, after the World Cup. This is my last Champions League with Liverpool, for football." The words came off as extremely saddening even from Arthur who spoke them into existence. His entire team completely stunned, especially Alfred and Vlad who were jaw dropped. "You're joking right?" Alfred said standing, almost offended though of course this was his decision to make and choose. "I'm not." He laughed a bit, expecting the explicit reaction from the American as everyone else sat in silence.  
  
Arthur smiled when Matthias stood up and hugged him, not exactly knowing how to take it. He never expected the most loud and rowdy english team to be so quiet, so damn petrified into silence. Alfred he could understand, he was still young and he was always his mentor but they had known this was soon to come, Arthur was _37_, he couldn't play forever. He didn't want to, he wanted to do other things and support his team from a new direction.   
  
He was tired. He didn't want to be, football had been his entire life since he was a child and decided to be dropped in the academy, his brothers going elsewhere besides Dylan, the Welsh man decided to stay though it took him longer to become part of the senior team, Arthur warned his brother before hand, telling him not to freak out or make a huge deal.  
  
"So after the summer you're retiring?" Vuk spoke up, a bit concerned. Arthur nodded, "Yes, I already had the press interview and everything, the statement is out and, it's my time to go." The entire Liverpool squad yelled at him the second the words left his lips, the Englishman rolling his eyes. "I'm old!" He yelled laughing before Vuk stood up, the Serbian looking at him, "I want you to be captain, all the big league matches we have left, I'll be Co-Captain."   
  
It was an honor, a very humble idea from a guy who could be a bit bipolar at times but he had to smirk and tap his shoulder, "Are you being serious and humble or is your wife watching you right now?" He earned a scoff and hit on the back from Vuk who grinned, "I'm serious! Tatjana had no influence, I swear." Though his wife would definitely had killed him if he didn't offer otherwise but he had to! He'd been playing since he was out the womb and old enough.   
  
"Deal." They shook hands before Arthur sat down next to all the teammates he had bonded with for years, some for a whole decade or more. "It's gonna be weird to eventually wake up and realize I don't have to come and run every damn day."   
  
//  
  
Arthur was starting to feel a bit choked up seeing all the staff hug him and give him all the good words, he still had an entire season and World Cup to go but he just knew in his heart this is what he needed, what he had to do at his age, he didn't want any more playing, possibly coaching but no more playing, though MLS almost immediately contacted him, he gave them a forced smile and told them kindly he would never.  
  
"Alright let's go, go!" Sadik yelled, wanting the players to stop messing around. He took Arthur in a deep hug, brushing his hair back and laughing as the English man knew exactly was about to come from his lips. "You've been a pleasure to play with and to coach." The Turkish man said, holding him in a grip before the English man squeezed past, wanting to train and just be part of the regular squad before getting all sappy and teary eyed.   
  
"I know, you've been a wonderful coach. You were a good opponent the few times we played, you're still older than me by a mile." He joked with a wink before Sadik laughed and told him to go run an extra mile, Arthur smiled and bolted it knowing he probably wasn't joking.  
  
Vuk clapped and smiled to himself, "So I think we are safe to the group stages, we've won all your games so far and have only tied with Barcelona once, so we are in good shape but don't just drop all that and think these games are freebies, we could be the deciding factor if another team goes or stays so give it your all, I swear to god I see one of you guys start diving—" the Serbian paused as Sadik yelled, "You're the one who dives!" His team cackling before the Serbian rolled his eyes. "Sometimes I do yes, but this isn't the time to. You should still be putting in all the effort possible."   
  
They all nodded, expecting the daily ranting and long essays of why in football you should always be trying, as if the team didn't know all that bullshit already after decades of playing. The Serbian looked around aimlessly, "That's honestly all I had but Vlad wanted to talk strategy real quick so you do that."   
  
The Romanian jumped up and nodded, "Okay, we're playing with the Ukranian team next for the second leg, we have the upper hand since we are 4-0 right now from the first leg but—" Arthur completely tuned him out but made sure he atleast looked a bit interested, though truthfully he was not.  
  
_It's gonna be a long and good last season. _  
  
_ //_  
  
_ Madrid, Spain_  
_ November 10th 2017 _  
_ 7:02 PM_  
  
_ — _  
  
_ -: ✧ :-゜・．_  
  
Dražen busted through his own door groaning, never feeling so wiped out and tired from training. He dropped his keys in the marble bowl by his door and made sure to take off his shoes before entering the house, shades over his eyes and an empty water bottle in hand, Enis snickering, "You okay?" He asked his boyfriend who shook his head and only stayed quiet. "No." He breathed out before putting his head on the marble countertop and keeping in all his emotions.  
  
The Bosnian didn't overthink much of Dražen's emotions, he was quite open but him being so silent definitely worried him. He got up and wrapped his arms around his waist gently, leaning his head on his back, "Do you wanna talk about it or you want to be left alone?" He whispered before kissing the back of his neck. "Please not alone." He choked out, wiping his eyes.   
  
Enis winced and turned him around before his lips curled into a concerned frown, his brows raising seeing him about three seconds away from breaking down. He put his hands over his cheeks and wiped his eyes gently, "Ljubav, come here." He mumbled before grabbing him some water and taking him to their large leather couch, Dražen sniffling and sighing before the Bosnian sat with the Croatian immediately collapsing on him, head on his stomach.   
  
The trust and comfort of wanting to be by him definitely made Enis feel good, beyond good, and a bit less worried but that didn't explain his stress and tears. "What's wrong? Stress or just something bad happened today at training?" Gently running a hand through his hair as he sighed, feeling tears strain from his eyes. "Stress."   
  
He pressed his lips together and thought for a minute before turning back to his lover who was just laying on his chest puffy eyed and exhausted. "Did you eat?" The question was stupid to some but Enis knew how Dražen could be with his eating habits. "I had water and some fruit." The Bosnian shook his head and felt his face become scrunched up. "You're awful to yourself sometimes you know."   
  
Enis made sure to gently get up before holding out his hands for Dražen who couldn't resisit smiling, they both kissed happy to see eachother before the Croatian settled on the bar chair right on the island of their home's kitchen. "Are you gonna cook for me?" He laughed a bit impressed if that was the case. Happiness dawned on his face again as Enis shook his head before staring, "Depends."   
  
They leaned in for another kiss before they seperated, happily in bliss and trying to ignore that soon enough this charade had to stop and they would have to just come out and be open about their relationship, but for now they liked how it was even if it could be stressful and hurt.   
  
"I really want burek." He itched before Enis cocked a brow and smirked, "Genuinely?" The Croatian nodded and grabbed his hand pleading gently and lovingly, trying to use his looks though it didn't take much begging for Enis to wave him off before looking in their fridge and pulling out all the ingredients and even taking filo dough out they had defrosting anyway.   
  
"Oh my god you're gonna make it?" Dražen extremely turned on with his boyfriend who could now suddenly cook. "Yes, I can cook!" He defended laughing before stealing a kiss from the Croatian who sat right on the island to watch him as he took his phone to take a more than sneaky picture of him mixing things together.   
  
He thought he was joking up until the time Enis actually finished it and put it in the oven and gave a wide smile to his boyfriend who was in awe. "So what are we gonna do for more than half an hour?" The madrid captain asked before the Bosnian grabbed him by his legs and picked him up, arms tightly holding him, "I have more than one idea." The tone beyond suggestive.   
  
"Please feel free to show me."  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> boyfriends! I swear next chapter no them, I will try and be original I promise, tumblr is @leljaaa and thank you for all the love and support and champions league is almost back! xx - lily.

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed ! xx - lily.


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